Say Hello to Your Friends
by MadameProngs10
Summary: Several different fics for the babysitters100 challenge at LJ. Each chapter is a separate prompt. LAST UPDATE: The Pikes go through all the boxes in their attic, which brings up old memories and reminiscing. Set about 4 years after canon.
1. Dream

**DREAM**

**Disclaimer: **The Baby-Sitters Club and all related characters are property of Ann M. Martin & Scholastic Inc.

**Summary:** In which Logan has seriously been over-studying for an English exam. Includes vampire!MA.

**AN:**All chapters in this fic are separate stories for the babysitters100 challenge at LiveJournal.

* * *

><p>Logan, Kristy, and Claudia remained frozen in a mixture of horror and awe as Mary Anne sauntered forward, the soft fabric of her gown billowing in the gentle wind. Her normally short, chestnut-brown hair was now dark - nearly black - and long, falling in graceful ringlets below her shoulders. As she drew closer, her violet eyes lit up and she broke into a dangerous, voluptuous smile.<p>

She advanced toward Logan with her arms outstretched, ignoring the presence of her former best friends.

"Logan," she breathed, in a tone that made Logan forget that this woman - _thing_ - was no longer his lover, but his enemy. Her voice was sweet and melodic; innocent yet seductive. Logan's breath constricted and he stood like a statue as Mary Anne leaned toward him, her cold hands feeling at his chest. He shivered, but remained rooted to the spot, staring longingly at the beautiful woman before him.

"Logan, my love," she continued, tilting her head to look up at him. Her gaze was intense, her smile enchanting. Logan felt himself growing weak under her scrutiny, ready to bend to her every desire. "You've come for me, haven't you? You've _come _for me, Logan, my love! You are going to leave the others, aren't you? You're going to leave the others and come with me?"

"I - " Logan's throat was dry and Mary Anne, sensing hesitation, pressed her bosom against him.

"Come with me," she whispered seductively, and Logan felt ready to melt as he felt her hot breath on his neck and gazed at the low, revealing neckline of her dress. "I want you, my love. I need you."

Slowly, as if in a trance, Logan nodded. He hungered for her; he desired her more than he had ever desired anything.

Mary Anne broke into a wicked grin and stood on her tip-toes as if to kiss Logan, her blood-red lips standing out against her pale skin…

But suddenly Kristy lunged forward, forcing a small golden crucifix between the two. Mary Anne instantly recoiled, leaping backward with lightning speed before rising like a cat and hissing at the trio. Her eyes lit with the fires of Hell and the dark red lips of her mouth formed a look of pure rage. A blood-curdling screech filled the air as Mary Anne charged at the group, but she was unable to move beyond the crucifix. She shook violently, fixing Kristy, Logan, and Claudia with a look of pure loathing and fury.

"Oh, my lord," whispered Claudia, eyes wide as she gazed at this figure that _used _to be her friend Mary Anne. Paling in horror, she pulled her own crucifix out of her pocket and extended it, supporting Kristy.

"Look what they're doing to me, Logan!" Mary Anne screeched, attempting to reach her lover, but failing. "They're trying to _hurt _me! Help me! Don't you love me? Don't you want me?"

"It's not Mary Anne, Logan!" Kristy yelled, still holding the crucifix out protectively. "Don't let her fool you!"

Logan appeared uncertain as he looked from Kristy and Claudia to Mary Anne in horror.

Mary Anne beckoned him forward and Kristy and Claudia forced her to retreat even further as they came closer with their crucifixes. "We can be together, Logan," Mary Anne crooned, carefully avoiding the crucifixes. "We can be together _forever_!"

"You _bitch_," Kristy hissed, surprising Logan. "You _bitch_! Don't listen to her," she directed her next words at Logan. "It's _not _Mary Anne!"

"Are you jealous, Kristy?" Mary Anne asked, seeming to realize her battle with Logan was over. "Poor little Kristy," she mocked, advancing suddenly and flirting with the crucifixes. "Poor Kristy's never going to have a real relationship because she's busy whining over her _daddy_. _No one _will want you."

Mary Anne cackled and threw her head back in mirth, as Kristy froze and dropped the crucifix she'd been holding. Logan, finally coming out of his trance, lurched forward and retrieved Kristy's crucifix from the ground. He held it out toward Mary Anne, absolutely disgusted by what she had become.

"You - !" Kristy made to lunge forward, planning to take on Mary Anne herself, but Claudia and Logan held her back.

Kristy struggled against the hold of her two friends, as Mary Anne took a moment to look on haughtily. Then, after glancing up at the sky, Mary Anne sprinted away, undoubtedly to find rest and shelter before the impending sunrise.

Kristy cursed as Mary Anne escaped. Claudia and Logan relinquished their hold.

"It's not Mary Anne," Claudia reminded both Logan and Kristy softly. She was shaking, terrified and shocked by what her and her friends had just gone through, but she was trying to keep herself together as much as possible. "Mary Anne…" she paused, her voice cracking. "… Mary Anne died. That - that _thing _- isn't her. It's a demon."

Normally Kristy was the leader among the group, but Claudia knew that this was her time to step up. Kristy couldn't think rationally when it came to this - although, honestly, Claudia wasn't much better - because Mary Anne had been her _best friend_. Mary Anne... the kind, sensitive one that was always so quick to offer advice and encouraging words to everyone.

And Mary Anne had been Logan's girlfriend. It had to be just as hard for him.

So Claudia took a deep breath, willing herself to be strong. "We have to kill it, guys. It's almost sunrise now. We can come back in a couple hours, when she'll be resting, and do it then. We'll do it for Mary Anne. We have to set her free."

* * *

><p>"Lo-gan!" Kerry called, throwing open her brother's bedroom door and barging in. "You told me you'd drive me to school! You're going to make both of us late! Get <em>up<em>!"

* * *

><p>Kerry opened the passenger door of Logan's car as soon as he parked, grabbing her backpack and rushing off to catch up with one of her friends. Logan rolled his eyes at his sister as pulled the keys out of the ignition, then stepped out of the car and locked the doors.<p>

"Logan!" a cheerful voice called from a few cars away. Smiling, Logan turned around to face Mary Anne, who had just stepped out of her father's car. She grinned at him and hurried to join him so they could walk inside together.

They kissed briefly, then Logan wrapped an arm around Mary Anne's shoulders, pulling her closer as they entered the school. Her short, brown hair tickled his arm as it flipped back and forth.

"Are you ready for this test?" Mary Anne asked conversationally.

"Yeah," Logan laughed, removing his arm from Mary Anne's shoulders as they approached her locker. He leaned against the wall as Mary Anne began to deftly work her combination lock. "_Dracula_. Piece of cake. I could pass this test in my sleep."

_Really. You have no idea._


	2. Wish

**WISH**

**Summary:** No one understands Natalie Springer.

**AN:**I've never written ANY of the LS characters before, so I don't know how good this. Also, I tried to be as accurate as possible, but I haven't read KIMCC. I don't know if she has a big role in that series or not? Sorry if there are any glaring mistakes!

Natalie's storyline in _Claudia and Crazy Peaches_ really just broke my heart. :( Even though she eventually ended up making friends with Becca and Char in the book, I couldn't help but wonder how long that friendship would actually last since they're older than her, go to different schools, etc. So, this is just one of many possibilities!

* * *

><p>"This is our last recess ever," Karen sighs dramatically as their fifth grade class files out of Stoneybrook Academy. "Isn't it awful?"<p>

"I'll still get to accidentally hit you in the face with the dodgeball during PE," Ricky supplies, shoving Karen out of the way as he passes her with Bobby.

Karen glowers and chases Ricky to the field.

"Get a life, Goldilocks!" Ricky calls over his shoulder.

A few moments later, Karen catches up with Ricky and attempts to tackle him.

"_Don't. Call. Me. Goldilocks._"

Ricky rolls his eyes and peels Karen off of him.

"Whatever, Goldilocks. Get lost."

XXX

Hannie and Nancy are sitting near the playground, aimlessly running their fingers through the mulch.

"Are you still coming over later?" Hannie asks. "My mom is going to order pizzas."

"Yup!" Nancy replies. She pauses and hesitantly nods toward Karen. "You don't think she's still mad, do you?"

"Because we're having the sleepover at my house instead? I don't think so. She told me she's bringing her _Cassandra Clue_tapes for us to watch."

Nancy doesn't appear to have heard Hannie. She's silent for several moments, and then looks up at Hannie as if she's annoyed. "I don't get why she was ever mad, anyway. We're always at her house. What's the big deal?"

Hannie shrugs.

XXX

"Ew, look at her!" Leslie laughs, pointing at Karen. "She's such a loser."

"Poor Ricky," Jannie agrees, wrinkling her nose in distaste at Karen's antics. "She never leaves him alone."

"She still hasn't gotten over the divorce," Pamela remarks with a snort, referring to the time Karen and Ricky got married on the playground in third grade.

Jannie and Leslie laugh.

"But Ricky _is_cute," Jannie blushes.

"Totally," Pamela agrees, with the air of someone who has complete confidence and thinks she is much older and more important than she actually is. "And smart."

Pamela raises an eyebrow at Jannie. She doesn't say anything, but she doesn't need to because the message is clear: _He's mine_.

XXX

Natalie lingers to the side of the kickball field as her classmates scatter in various directions. She looks up at the clouds and tries to find something interesting about them. Sometimes in the movies, characters talk about how clouds look like cats, elephants, or dogs. They lie on the ground with their friends and giggle, making up stories about the different shapes. Natalie doesn't see anything but big, white blobs. Boring, like her.

She checks the time on her watch: 2:01. One minute of torture down, fifty-nine to go. Fifty-nine long, lonely, agonizing minutes.

She sees Ricky pushing Karen away, Hannie grinning at Nancy, and Pamela gossiping with Jannie and Leslie. Bobby, Scott, and some of the other kids are playing kickball. They yell for Ricky to join them, but he's still trying to get rid of Karen.

Everyone has a place.

Everyone but her.

For a moment, she considers joining Nancy and Hannie. Sometimes she sits with Nancy, Hannie, and Karen at lunch, and they're not mean to her. They don't make fun of her lisp like Leslie does or snicker at her outfits like Pamela does. They never yank on her braids or call her "pimple face" like the boys do, either. At the same time, though, Natalie knows they're closer to each other than they are to her. They talk about things they did when they were younger, and Natalie doesn't have anything to add. They call themselves the Three Musketeers, and Natalie feels left out.

Even though they're nice to her, she knows they probably don't want her around.

She doesn't join Nancy and Hannie at the playground.

It feels like twenty minutes have passed. Natalie checks the time - 2:05 - and stares at the ground solemnly. She wishes she had friends. She wishes she could be as happy as everyone else.

At least she has Charlotte and Becca, but they go to Stoneybrook Middle School, so Natalie hardly ever gets to see them. She begged her parents to let her go there for middle school instead, but they don't understand why she can't make friends with her classmates. "Ask them if they want to come over and play, or if they want to go to the movies," her mom always tells her exasperatedly. "It's not hard."

But it _is_. Her lisp is slowly getting better, but she's still scared. She knows she'll never be as popular as Pamela, as smart as Karen, or as friendly as Hannie. Even if she does manage to make friends here, there will still be some people who will only remember her as the girl with the droopy socks who has pimples all over her face. Her parents don't know that sometimes she cries herself to sleep at night and hopes that she'll be sick in the morning so she won't have to go to school. They just don't understand; no one does.

It's 2:10. Natalie closes her eyes and imagines what it would be like to be Karen Brewer instead. She smiles. She would give anything to be Karen.

"Hey, pimple face!" Bobby yells, jerking her out of her thoughts. "Move! You're in our way!"

Natalie knows Karen wouldn't let Bobby say mean things to her or be bossy, but Natalie isn't Karen. She swallows and turns around, then slowly begins to walk away. She stands under a tree on the other side of the playground and positions herself so that Bobby and his friends can't see her.

She blinks.

She's really not going to miss recess.


	3. Autograph

**AUTOGRAPH**

**Disclaimer: **All characters herein belong to Scholastic Inc. and Ann M. Martin

**Summary: **_"I didn't think," Kristy said conversationally. "That it was possible for anyone to get drunk faster than Ethel can unwrap a Snickers bar."_

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><p>"I didn't think," Kristy said conversationally. "That it was possible for anyone to get drunk faster than Ethel can unwrap a Snickers bar."<p>

"That's mean," Dawn informed Kristy with an icy glare. "Poor Ethel. If everyone would just stop making fun of her..."

As Dawn rambled on with some long speech about bullying, Kristy gave Claudia a look as if to say: _Well, it's the truth_. Then she reached over and yanked a martini out of Mary Anne's grasp. "Mary Anne," she said. "I think that's enough for now."

"_Look_, Kristy!" she squealed, pointing across the club at Alan Gray. "It's Cam Geary!"

Kristy turned in the direction of Mary Anne's finger and made a disgusted face. "I think someone spiked Mary Anne's drink," she told her friends seriously.

"Oh, my," Claudia followed Kristy's gaze and convulsed in giggles. Realizing he was being stared at, Alan whirled around and winked at the girls. Kristy scowled, and Claudia quickly lifted her glass to her lips. Dawn, seeming to realize no one was paying attention to her, ended her speech.

"Is she okay?" Dawn asked Kristy, nodding toward Mary Anne.

"I don't know. She thinks _Alan Gray_ is _Cam Geary_," Kristy explained painfully.

"You'd think she'd at least choose someone with the right hair color," Claudia added thoughtfully.

"I don't know," Dawn mused, swirling her straw around her glass. "Alan Gray's gotten better-looking since I last saw him."

"_Shut up!_" Kristy hissed, glaring at her friends. "He's coming over here."

Alan walked toward them, wearing a faded pair of jeans and a navy blue tee-shirt. He was smirking, one hand slid into a pocket casually and the other holding a drink. Mary Anne batted her eyelashes flirtatiously.

"Hi, Cam," she swooned, sitting at the edge of her stool. She started to fall off, but Kristy jerked her upright, glaring at Alan as if all of this was his fault. "I'm your biggest fan."

"And I, my dear," Alan began, his grin widening. "Am _your_biggest fan."

"God," Kristy muttered, plopping an elbow on the bar. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Too much scotch, Kristy?" Alan inquired innocently. "We all know how _moody_you get…"

"Oh, you know my friend Kristy?" Mary Anne asked, her voice bubbly as she tugged at the corners of her blouse and gazed at Alan with clear adoration.

Kristy shot Alan a venomous look, then rose and stalked off. Dawn hurried to steady Mary Anne. "What's up with Kristy?" she whispered to Claudia.

Claudia shrugged as she whispered back. "Who knows. Alan's right, she _is_moody."

"So, Mary Anne," Alan was saying. He held out an arm and ducked his head. "May I have this dance?"

She giggled in delight, stumbling off her stool and literally falling against him. He caught her easily, gently guiding her onto the dance floor as a slow song began to play.

* * *

><p>"I'm going to kill you," Kristy growled later that night, leaning against the outside of the club as she fished through her purse for her keys.<p>

"You love me," Alan disagreed, twisting her keyring around one of his fingers. "Admit it."

"_Mary Anne_," Kristy stressed. "You got _Mary Anne_drunk. That's like against the laws of nature. She's off-limits."

"Hey," Alan held up his hands defensively. "Mary Anne's a big girl. She wanted a night of fun and I gave it to her. You know she said she'd never had a drink before? Now _that_is against the laws of nature."

"_Mary Anne_," Kristy repeated, shaking her head. "I can't believe you did that. And then you let her believe you were Cam Geary…"

"The things I do for others," Alan said solemnly.

Kristy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure you hated pretending to be a superstar." She paused, bending down and dumping her purse's contents on the sidewalk. "I _know_I put my keys in here!"

Alan grinned. "Looking for these?"

Kristy glanced over at Alan and sighed. "Not funny, Gray."

He shrugged and threw the keys at her. She caught them deftly and started to place the rest of her belongings back in her purse.

"What, not even a thank-you kiss?" Alan teased.

"Not going to happen, Gray!" she called over her shoulder, taking off in the direction of her car.

"Come on!" he yelled back. "I'll give you an autograph!"


	4. Nervous

**Rumor Has It**

_Nervous _for babysitters 100 | Requested by GloriaFan

**Summary: **Ducky and Sunny's second kiss doesn't go any better than the first.

"Rumor has it that you and Sunny kissed," Maggie teased Ducky, curling a strand of blue-streaked hair around one of her fingers.

Ducky slammed his locker and turned to Maggie, confused. "Where did you hear _that_?"

"Sunny," Maggie replied smugly. Ducky should have known. She leaned back, absently kicking the heel of one of her tall, black boots against the locker. "Not gonna lie, it surprised me. I always thought…"

She trailed off, fixing Ducky with a conspiratorial look. She didn't need to finish the sentence. She knew that they both understood exactly what she was implying.

"Uh…" Ducky began awkwardly. It wasn't that he went out of his way trying to hide his sexuality from his friends; he'd always assumed that it had been obvious. Clearly, Sunny hadn't gotten the message as easily as Maggie had.

Before he could reply, Sunny herself appeared, orange backpack slung over her shoulder carelessly. Neither of them paid much attention as Maggie discreetly abandoned the scene.

"So..." Sunny started, shuffling her feet. She folded her arms across her chest, staring at Ducky with those big, bright eyes.

Guilt fluttered in Ducky's stomach. He loved Sunny; she was one of his closest friends. But she was _just_ a friend. Knowing that she had expected more out of their relationship made him feel incredibly uncomfortable.

"... Yeah?"

"I talked to Dawn last night. And she sort of, well… explained things to me."

Of course she did. Ducky could only imagine how _that_ conversation went.

He silently placed his right hand on Sunny's shoulder, unsure if she was finished or not. Sunny didn't look mad or disgusted or anything, but still… Ducky was pretty sure his heart had never beaten this fast before. He didn't want to ask.

"I guess I should have picked up on it after the first time we kissed, huh?" She chuckled darkly before shaking her head, embarrassed. "But what I'm trying to say is, well… I get it. I feel like a freaking moron, but I understand. If this is you, then we're cool."

"You… what? Really?" Ducky stumbled, breaking into a hesitant smile. He hadn't been expecting it to be that easy. This was _Sunny_, not Dawn or Amalia or Maggie. Impulsive, grudge-holding, prideful Sunny. His best friend.

"Yeah," she grinned, placing her hand on his shoulder and looking him straight in the eye. Then she leaned in unexpectedly and planted a kiss on his cheek. Ducky mirrored her grin.

"Friends, then?" Ducky asked, relieved, half-embracing her.

"Obviously," Sunny rolled her eyes. She pulled away from Ducky and the two of them began to walk down the hall together. Ducky would be lying if he didn't say that it felt a little awkward, but it was a step.

"You should have just fucking told me the _first_ time, you twat!" Sunny slapped him.

_Nevermind_, Ducky thought with a smile, _things are completely normal._


	5. Old

**OLD**

**Author****'****s ****Note:**For miss_slipslop at LiveJournal. :) Also, the Pikes' version of 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' is taken from _Mallory's__ Christmas __Wish_.

* * *

><p>"You woke me up at eight o'clock in the morning on a Saturday to clean?" Margo moaned. "I need to <em>sleep<em>."

Byron didn't so much as flinch. He was leaning against the doorframe, a roll of tape in one hand. "But if everyone starts cleaning the attic now, we'll be done in a few hours. And us moving into the attic means that you get your own room," he reasoned.

"Only when Mallory and Vanessa are at Riverbend," Margo reminded him.

"Your point? They're gone like nine months out of the year."

"Well, they're home now, so what difference does it make if I want to go back to sleep?" she demanded.

"Hey, Margo!" Jordan called from the hallway, where he was stacking several empty boxes near the staircase leading to the attic in the hallway. "You coming or not?"

"It is _Saturday_!" she repeated, screeching the last word. This time, Byron cringed. Sometimes he wondered how he and his brothers had managed to keep their hearing intact when they had Claire and Margo for younger sisters. "_I__ am __going __back __to __bed!_"

Byron shrugged, apparently deciding it was a lost cause, and left the room. Margo slammed her door and flopped down in bed, burying her face in her pillow. Victory.

A few minutes later, her bedroom door creaked open. She pulled the covers tightly around her body. Her siblings were pains.

"Rise and shine, Margo," Jordan said in a sing-song voice that was oddly menacing. The next thing she knew, the covers were being ripped away from her and bright sunlight was blinding her vision. Of _course_ Jordan had opened the blinds. At least Byron had been more considerate.

As she rolled over so that she was lying on her side, she saw that she wasn't alone. Adam had come in the bedroom along with Jordan, and was standing near the window. So Adam had technically been the one to open the blinds. Both of them were being annoying jerks, so it really didn't make much of a difference.

"Mom said we have to clean out the attic today," Jordan told his sister. Margo bitterly wondered why he chose _today_ to care about what their mother said to do. "So get your lazy ass out of bed."

Margo shot up at the insult, glaring. "Well, I _was_ going to help," she lied, "but now I'm not. You can't just call me - hey! Stop it! Put me down!"

Adam and Jordan had come up on each side of Margo, lifting her up out of bed and carrying her out of the room. But at Margo's request, they dropped her and she landed in the hallway on her bottom.

"Are you awake now?" Adam smirked.

"Ugh!"

Margo got to her feet haughtily. But even though she didn't look too happy about it, she she realized she wasn't going to win and stalked off in the direction of the attic.

"I think we can take that as a yes," Jordan told Adam softly, grinning.

XXX

"You're the ones that want to move up here," Margo complained to the triplets once they'd all arrived in the attic, surveying the pile of boxes with disdain. Claire, Nicky, and Vanessa had already started going through their things. _Mallory_ wasn't in the attic yet, which was totally unfair. "Why do _we_ have to help?"

"Well, technically you _don__'__t_ have to help…" Jordan pointed out. He looked at Byron.

"Yeah," Byron agreed with a sideways glance at his sister. He kicked aside a few toys that were in his way. "We can just throw away your stuff, if you want."

"Or donate it to Goodwill," Adam supplied helpfully.

Margo glared at her brothers. "It is probably all old junk that I don't care about anymore," she grumbled, before crossing the room and beginning to dig through a box that had MARGO sloppily written on the side with a black Sharpie.

The triplets rolled their eyes at each other.

"Hey, it's my Lucy dress!" Claire spoke up, holding the frilly ensemble in front of her. She twirled around. "You know, I had good taste for a five-year-old."

Nicky, who had started flipping through a photo album he'd found in one of the boxes, looked up. "I remember that," he said. "Didn't you, like, wear it for a week straight? Even when you went to bed? Your five-year-old self also had hygiene issues."

"I did not!" Claire protested, throwing the dress in the 'keep' pile. "You were the one with the Spiderman shirt, and you refused to let Mom wash it because you were afraid it would _shrink_. Or that the color would fade. Or… hey," Claire stopped mid-sentence, noticing a flash of red cloth sticking out beneath her dress. She bent to pick it up, and then waved it above her head like a flag. "You found it!"

"I meant to put that in the give-away pile," Nicky informed Claire defensively, trying to snatch the shirt out of her grasp.

"_Su-ure_ you did," Claire stuck out her tongue, dangling the shirt in front of him like a prize. He was older and taller, but she was fast. "Did you miss your Spiderman shirt, Nicky? Maybe if you ask nicely, Mom will sew it on a quilt for you. Then you can sleep with it every night."

"Cut it out, guys," Mallory said from the doorway. Claire nearly knocked over a pile of boxes marked as 'fragile' as she danced around the room, trying to evade Nicky. "You're going to break something."

"So what if they do?" Margo snapped. Her hair was sticking up all over the place, and her face was a mess of yesterday's makeup. She still didn't seem very thrilled at being woken up at eight o'clock. "It would be less crap for us to go through."

"I think it's her time of the month," Nicky whispered to Byron, who grimaced.

"Some of this stuff could be special," Mallory walked into the room and opened the nearest box and began to dig through it as if to prove her point. Moments later, she pulled out a few beheaded Barbie dolls and sighed. "… okay, so maybe nothing in _there_ is worth keeping, at least," she admitted, dumping the entire box's contents in the 'trash' pile. "But I'm sure there are plenty of keepsakes up here."

"I found my Lucy dress and Nicky found his Spiderman shirt," Claire offered.

"I'm _twelve_," Nicky defended himself, suddenly lunging forward and capturing the shirt from Claire when she wasn't expecting it. He made a big show out of throwing it in the 'give-away' pile. "I don't need a stupid Spiderman shirt."

"Oh, whatever."

As soon as he'd whirled around, Mallory placed a finger to her lips and quickly returned the Spiderman shirt to the 'keep' pile. Claire stifled a giggle.

XXX

Mallory turned out to be right. Although the attic was mainly full of junk, they found a few treasures, too. The triplets' Wandering Frog People and old Matchbox cars were discovered in a crate labeled 'shoes' (no one asked). A thick notebook full of illustrated stories that Mallory and Vanessa had created together had somehow wound up in a box full of Mrs. Pike's old cookbooks. One of Margo's old report cards (_"Margo __is __a __very __gifted __student, __but __she__ often __gets __in __trouble __for __bossing __other __students __around__ and __talking__ too__ much__ during __class"_) was crumpled at the bottom of a box filled with artwork that all of the kids had made while they were at SES.

The boxes marked as 'fragile' turned out to be a mixture of china that Mrs. and Mr. Pike had received as wedding gifts (but for some reason never opened) and old Christmas decorations. Vanessa pulled a gorgeous angel tree topper out of one of the boxes. "I wonder why we've never used this," she said absently.

Mallory turned to see what Vanessa was talking about. "We have, remember?" she replied. "Dad used to put an angel on top of the tree every Christmas, but they would always end up falling off and breaking so Mom and Dad started using stars instead."

"_I_ remember that. They just, like, dove to their death," Jordan spoke up dramatically from where he'd been digging through a box of old action figures. With one final look, he kicked the box in the general direction of the 'give-away' pile. "Our house is so crazy that it makes angels commit suicide," he declared.

Mallory rolled her eyes. "Or we had so many little kids screaming and running in the house that the Christmas tree would literally shake and cause the angel to end up in a million tiny pieces on the floor."

"Yeah, right, we were _angelic_ little kids," Jordan corrected.

"Yeah, just as angelic as you are now," Mallory snorted, fixing her fourteen-year-old brothers with an amused look. "Or as angelic as you were last night, I guess I should say? What were you guys doing out so late, anyway?"

"Us? Out late? Never."

"Oh, really? Because I could have sworn I heard you guys sneaking out after Mom and Dad went to bed, and then-"

"Mal, cool it," Jordan broke in, rolling his eyes. "No big deal, okay? You're not our mother."

"I was just curious," Mallory shrugged, lowering her voice so that none of the younger kids would overhear. "I like to have fun too, you know. If there was a party, you should have told me. I can't ever find anything to do in this town."

"You? A party?" Jordan asked, looking as if he was about to burst out laughing. _That _was not what he had been expecting from Mallory.

Mallory looked as if she was trying to decide whether or not he was messing with her. Finally, she settled on shoving him. He shoved her back.

"Look what I found!" Claire suddenly squealed, interrupting her older siblings. She carried over an old shoebox filled with dusty cassette tapes.

Margo, whose mood hadn't improved much, groaned. "That is it? Tapes? When are we going to be _done_?"

"Not just any tapes!" Claire informed Margo happily, singling one out and offering it to her older sister. It had a homemade label across the front, with messy scrawl written in red marker. "_Christmas_ tapes."

Margo frowned, as if she didn't know what that had to do with anything, before reading the title. " 'Our Twelve Days of Christmas.' The one we've been trying to find for _years?_"

"We should go downstairs and listen to it!" Nicky suggested.

Margo quickly agreed. Anything to get out of cleaning the attic.

Mallory checked her watch. "We haven't eaten anything yet. Do you guys want to take a break?"

XXX

Half an hour later, the Pikes were sitting around the kitchen table - they'd decided to do a smorgasbord for brunch. After wolfing down three fried bologna sandwiches, Byron went off in search of the cassette player. He popped the tape in and pressed play. There were a few moments of pause, and then Mrs. Pike's voice could be heard singing…

"_On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… some garbage in a bare tree!"_

The Pikes stared at each other for a few seconds, then burst out laughing at the memory. On the tape, Mrs. Pike repeated her opening line (_"__On__ the __second __day __of __Christmas, __my __true __love __gave __to __me__…"_) and this time was joined by Vanessa's choice of _"__two__ curdled __gloves.__"_ Adam's _"__three __stooges__"_ followed, then Mallory's _"__four __crawling__ nerds__"_ and Margo's _"__fiiiiive __hornet __stiiiings!__"_

By this point, all the Pikes except Margo (who still hadn't given up her pouting) and Adam and Jordan were joyfully singing along. ("I thought you liked singing!" Claire complained to Jordan, to which he'd replied "I have _standards_." But Claire would've had to be blind to miss the way the corners of his mouth kept twitching as each new day was revealed.)

When the five-year-old Claire's voice cried out _"__six__ silly-billy-goo-goos!__"_, Claire's face turned so red that everyone started laughing so hard and Byron had to pause the tape because they couldn't hear the song.

"Is there a problem, Claire silly-billy-goo-goo?" Nicky taunted as soon as he managed to catch his breath. His eyes were dancing.

"I know where you sleep," Claire growled. Her 'cute' phase was not something she cared to be reminded of. Nine years old, and she still couldn't escape it.

"Or better yet," she added evilly, twirling a strand of her around one of her fingers. "I know your girlfriend's phone number. I'm sure she would love to hear all about your Spiderman shirt…"

"Oooh, I'm scared," Nicky rolled his eyes, taking a bite of his sandwich. He continued to speak as he chewed. "Hannah isn't even my girlfriend."

"Hannah?" Byron joined the conversation. "So that's her name. … Wait, Hannah as in Linny Papadakis' sister? How'd _you_ get with _her_?"

It had only been meant as good-hearted teasing, but-

"Fuck you," Nicky retorted.

"Hey, watch your language!" Mallory intervened, glaring at the triplets. It was, after all, because of them that Nicky had recently developed such a fondness for swear words. They appeared completely unconcerned, though, and Nicky ignored her.

"You know how he always asks Mom to drive him to David Michael's house? Well, he's really been hanging out with Hannah," Claire informed the table at large. She was enjoying this. And it was all Nicky's fault for making fun of her. "Everyone in the Krushers is talking about it."

Claire and Nicky went into another round of bickering. Margo groaned and banged her head on the table. Byron fixed another sandwich. Finally, Vanessa decided enough was enough.

"Will everyone please shut up?" she requested. No one heard her, so she tried again. "_Shut__ up_!"

Everyone grew silent and turned to look at her as if she had three heads. Jordan, who seemed amused by her outburst, gave her a thumbs-up. Without another word, she walked to the cassette player and pressed the 'play' button. It didn't take the Pikes long to forget about their petty arguments and start laughing at the song again.

"_On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… seven bologna-and-peanut-butter sandwiches!"_

"_On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… eight soggy tacos!"_

"_On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… nine leaping wombats!"_

"_On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… ten bags of Snickers!"_

"_On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… eleven socks a-stinking!"_

"_On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… twelve, um… velociraptor eggs! You know, like a dozen? And then when you crack them, raaaawr!"_

They went through each of the days, laughing at the ridiculous "gifts" they'd chosen and belting out _"…__.__and__ some __garbage __in __a __bare __tree!__" _as loud as they could at the end. When it got to the twelfth day of Christmas and Nicky's voice came on the tape recorder, everyone lost it. Nicky, Byron, and Mallory had tears in their eyes. Claire was laughing so hard that she didn't even think to stick her tongue out at Nicky, or kick him under the table.

Even Margo, Adam, and Jordan joined in as the song descended for the final time. Mr. and Mrs. Pike returned from their trip to the grocery store as their kids were singing _"… __four __crawling __nerds!__"_ for the last time. They sat two gallons of milk and a brown bag overflowing with apples on the kitchen counter, then paused to listen to the rest of the song.

"…. Christmas in July?" Mr. Pike questioned with a crooked grin after they'd finished.

"We found the tape while we were cleaning out the attic!" Claire explained excitedly, her cheeks pink from laughing.

"That's great, dear," Mrs. Pike smiled, ruffling Claire's hair. Claire pushed her mother's hand away. "You'll have to play it again after we finish carrying in the groceries so I can hear it."

The triplets, Nicky, and Claire left to help their parents bring the groceries inside.

Margo pushed her chair out and stood up. She was unaware of Mallory following her out of the kitchen, through the living room, and up the stairs. Finally, once they were in the upstairs hallway and out of everyone else's earshot, Mallory spoke up.

"You okay?" she asked simply, catching up with her younger sister so that they were walking side-by-side.

Margo frowned, casting Mallory a side-ways look. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You seemed to be in a mood earlier, that's all," Mallory shrugged. She knew that was a dangerous thing to say - if Margo was still in a mood, then she'd get yelled at for telling her she was in a mood (_sisters_) - but Margo had seemed off earlier.

"Yeah," Margo said shortly, a tone of edginess in her voice. "Of course I'm fine."

"Just checking."

Mallory had always prided herself on being able to read her siblings well, so she was pretty sure that something _was_ bothering Margo. But she wasn't going to go overboard pushing it.

Several seconds of silence passed as Margo and Mallory returned to the attic to finish going through their things. Eight people, as it turned out, could get quite a bit done together; so it wouldn't be much longer before the triplets could start moving their things into the attic. When the triplets move to the attic, Margo will have her own room - well, sort of. She'll have to share with Mallory or Vanessa when they are on break from Riverbend, but for the most part… the room will be all hers.

No Claire annoying her and getting into all her things.

No Claire dragging all her kiddie toys on _her_ side of the room.

No Claire to stay up with well past midnight, talking and giggling and then pretending to be asleep when their parents come to find the source of all the noise.

"It'll be nice having your own room, huh?" Mallory persisted.

Margo used to dream of having her own room. But now that she was actually _getting_ one, she sort of wanted to keep things the old way. She'd been unsure of the idea ever since it was first brought up, but a day of uncovering old keepsakes and reminiscing and laughing had really made her nostalgic. She knew that Claire would only be across the hall, so at least it wasn't like she was _moving_. She just… didn't know what to expect. It would be weird, that's all.

"Margo?"

"Yeah," Margo replied distractedly, neatly arranging all the items in her 'keep' pile into a box. She met Mallory's eyes, smiling at her older sister. "It'll be cool."

It was only a half-lie, really. Maybe part of her wanted to keep things the old way forever, but it _would_ be nice to not have to listen to Claire's snoring anymore.


End file.
